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Synonyms

bug out

British  

verb

  1. slang (intr, adverb) to depart hurriedly; run away; retreat

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
bug out Idioms  

  1. Bulge, as in The news will make her eyes bug out with astonishment . This expression was originally used literally for bulging eyes and later used more loosely as a sign of astonishment. [ Colloquial ; mid-1800s]

  2. Leave, run out, as in This conference is a bore; I think I'll bug out . This usage originated as military slang for deserting and today is used more loosely. [ Slang ; c. 1950]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And yet, this phenomenon still makes jaws drop and eyes bug out of heads.

From Salon • Jan. 18, 2026

When I booked a Tesla for my recent Miami trip, the daily rate didn’t cause my eyes to bug out.

From Washington Post • Dec. 16, 2021

I had the camera app bug out a few times, but generally it's been fast and stable.

From The Verge • Aug. 18, 2017

John Frankenheimer somehow turned art preservation into a white-knuckle actioner, as train saboteurs conspire to prevent Germany from looting artifacts as they bug out of Paris.

From The Guardian • Mar. 29, 2017

She wears bifocals that make her eyes bug out.

From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.